Documenting Sources

MLA Documentation

Original Passage: from page 15 of the book cited below.

“However difficult it may be to measure comparatively, there are many reasons for humankind to value its environment and biological richness. Many arguments for conservation are based on the direct value of natural systems to humans. They provide us with many of the goods and services we depend on and therefore act as good leverage in political debate. Humans have always relied on the natural world and, despite our technological development, this remains just as true today. A wide range of natural products are harvested for food and materials for clothing and construction, and we rely on the health of ecosystems to provide us with a reliable source of freshwater and clean air as well as maintaining the population of those species we directly exploit.”

The above excerpt was taken directly from the book written by Pullin and it includes all of the punctuation as noted within the text.

Plagiarized Passage

Today, many reasons still exist for humankind to value its environment and biological richness. Conservationists argue the direct value of natural systems to humans; since they provide us with many of the goods and services we depend on and therefore act as good leverage in political debate. Humans have always relied on the natural world and, despite our technological development, this remains just as true today. Many natural products are harvested for food and materials for clothing and construction, but we rely on the health of ecosystems to provide us with a reliable source of freshwater and clean air as well as maintaining the population of those species we directly exploit.

This paragraph is considered plagiarized because the language it uses is nearly the same as the original. In many cases, the sentence structure is the same except that a few words/phrases have been changed, moved, or removed. The paragraph also does not include any type of citation back to the original source or author even though the original ideas have been used. In addition, quotation marks have not been used to indicate the original language taken from that author.

Acceptable Paraphrase

Humankind must value its environment and biological resources. Natural resources are extremely valuable to the human race, providing us with the bulk of necessary goods and services, a reason every conservation issue is often a hot topic for political debate. In spite of recent advances in technology, humans continue to rely on the natural world as we always have. Nature provides us with raw materials for construction products, as well as clothing. In addition, some food products come from nature. Yet, a healthy ecosystem is needed to provide us with a dependable source of clean freshwater and air (Pullin 15).

In this case, the ideas portrayed by the original author have been kept, but they have been explained in different language. A citation following MLA format has been included that refers the reader back to the original source.

Acceptable Summary

Since the beginning of human history, the environment and its resources have been linked with humans. Conservation efforts are needed to provide humans with the clean freshwater and air found in healthy ecosystems (Pullin 15).

This summary is considered acceptable because a citation back to the original source has been included and follows MLA format. The overall original thought has been preserved, but the information has been condensed.

Acceptable Summary with Direct Quote

This passage keeps with the message given in the original text and uses some of the original phrasing, but quotation marks have been properly uses to note this.

APA Documentation

Original Passage: from page 15 of the book cited below.

“However difficult it may be to measure comparatively, there are many reasons for humankind to value its environment and biological richness. Many arguments for conservation are based on the direct value of natural systems to humans. They provide us with many of the goods and services we depend on and therefore act as good leverage in political debate. Humans have always relied on the natural world and, despite our technological development, this remains just as true today. A wide range of natural products are harvested for food and materials for clothing and construction, and we rely on the health of ecosystems to provide us with a reliable source of freshwater and clean air as well as maintaining the population of those species we directly exploit.”

Plagiarized Passage

Today, many reasons still exist for humankind to value its environment and biological richness. Conservationists argue the direct value of natural systems to humans; since they provide us with many of the goods and services we depend on and therefore act as good leverage in political debate. Humans have always relied on the natural world and, despite our technological development, this remains just as true today. Many natural products are harvested for food and materials for clothing and construction, but we rely on the health of ecosystems to provide us with a reliable source of freshwater and clean air as well as maintaining the population of those species we directly exploit.

This paragraph is considered plagiarized because the language it uses is nearly the same as the original. In many cases, the sentence structure is the same except that a few words/phrases have been changed, moved, or removed. The paragraph also does not include any type of citation back to the original source or author even though the original ideas have been used. In addition, quotation marks have not been used to indicate the original language taken from that author.

Acceptable Paraphrase

Humankind must value its environment and biological resources. Natural resources are extremely valuable to the human race, providing us with the bulk of necessary goods and services, a reason every conservation issue is often a hot topic for political debate. In spite of recent advances in technology, humans continue to rely on the natural world as we always have. Nature provides us with raw materials for construction products, as well as clothing. In addition, some food products come from nature. Yet, a healthy ecosystem is needed to provided us with a dependable source of clean freshwater and air (Pullin, 2002, p.15).

In this case, the ideas portrayed by the original author have been kept, but they have been explained in different language. A citation following APA format has been included that refers the reader back to the original source.

Acceptable Summary

Since the beginning of human history, the environment and its resources have been linked with humans. Conservation efforts are needed to provide humans with the clean freshwater and air found in healthy ecosystems (Pullin, 2002, p. 15).

This summary is considered acceptable because a citation back to the original source has been included and follows APA format. The overall original thought has been preserved, but the information has been condensed.